Terrible news. Hope everyone gets out safe. I want to say this is unprecedented, as (to my knowledge) this is the first total evacuation of a provincial or territorial capital in history, but I am not 100% sure. Can anyone confirm?

After Maui no one's taking chances.

"Minister orders town to evacuate by noon or face the consequences" has a very Old Testament feel to it.

Stay safe everyone

This is the best summary I could come up with:

There is time to evacuate the city of Yellowknife safely, said the territory's minister of Environment and Climate Change and Municipal and Community Affairs Wednesday, and people should begin leaving tonight.

In a news conference Wednesday evening, Minister Shane Thompson announced a city-wide evacuation order that would involve a "phased approach" with people from areas of the city already under alert (Kam Lake, Grace Lake, Engle industrial area) heading out Wednesday night, alongside people in Dettah.

No other explanation of the phased approach to evacuation has been offered, but people in all of Yellowknife, Dettah, Ndilǫ and the Ingraham Trail are asked to be out of the city by noon Friday.

Thompson said that the highway from Yellowknife to Alberta is safe to drive.

He also said the department will have gas available along the highway, as well as tow trucks.

Officials said that would include civilian and military aircraft, though few details were immediately available.

I'm a bot and I'm open source!